In the popular sport of drag racing, the main objective is to complete the race (usually conducted along a straight quarter of one mile track) as quickly as possible. The race begins after a series of lights are flashed on a starting line "Christmas tree", culminating in a green light. Some important factors in successful drag racing are prompt acceleration of the vehicle, speed of the vehicle, the reaction time of the driver to the series of lights, the functioning of the vehicle, the proper analyses of race results, etc.
In order to maintain competitive races whereby simply the most expensive vehicle does not prevail in each race, many tracks establish a pre-set minimum time in which a race may be completed. This pre-set time is typically referred to as an index time and is established to ensure close results between competitors. If a car completes the race in a time under the allotted index time, the racer is declared the loser by disqualification.
Whether in "open" racing or "index" racing, many technical advancements have been made to improve upon the aforementioned factors which affect the outcome of a race. At the same time, most sanctioning bodies attempt to maintain driver skill as the most critical factor to the race result.
One example of the technology typically employed to improve drag racing is Reid Reissue U.S. Pat. No. 32,474 ("the '474 patent") entitled VARIABLE TIME DELAY APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING THE START OF A VEHICLE. The device described in the '474 patent is a delay circuit which is commonly incorporated into a delay box. In essence, the driver ideally attempts to have the race vehicle leave the starting line at exactly the time when the green light on the Christmas tree turns on. To accomplish this goal, however, the driver must anticipate the green light and actually release the transbrake solenoid before the green light illuminates (usually when an amber warning light appears). This "anticipation" of the green light is necessary since both the driver has a reaction time and the vehicle also has a reaction time before the car actually begins to move. Most presently available drag racing vehicles have the ability to take off so fast that if the driver releases the brake solenoid on the last amber warning light, the car will still undesirably take off before the green light, thereby resulting in a false (or foul) start. The circuitry presented in the '474 patent is coupled to the braking means and provides a variable time delay until the brake is actually released. Thus, the occurrence of foul starts is greatly reduced. The operation of such delay circuits is well understood in the art.
The actual setting of the delay times for the circuitry established in devices such as shown in the '474 patent is particularly important in a very popular form of drag racing known as "elapsed time" or "ET" racing wherein the more powerful car is held at the starting line for a longer period of time. Again, the goal in such racing is to maintain competitiveness and emphasize driver skill. Although in ET racing, a green light appears separately for each driver, it is typically advantageous for the driver of the faster vehicle (which faces a delayed start) to react based on the first series of lights on the Christmas tree. However, in such instances, the delay timers of each racer, while dependant on each other's respective speeds, should be separately set.
Hamma et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,600,185 ("the '185 patent") entitled CROSS OVER DELAY APPARATUS provides means to permit a driver to react to the first amber light of the Christmas tree regardless of whether the race is handicapped or not. The race crew inputs the opponent's established elapsed time (ET) and their own established elapsed time (ET) into the invention's apparatus, as well as the standard timing-light/reaction-time delay used by the driver. The device then automatically calculates the handicap by which a faster car will be held and adds that time to the timing-light/reaction-time delay. This permits the driver to begin release timing from his opponent's Christmas tree lights, as opposed to his own. The driver may, of course, use his own Christmas tree if desired by setting the ET timers to zero, to equal values, or by setting the opponent's ET lower than his own.
While the aforementioned '474 patent and '185 patent relate to a delay time feature at the initiation of the race, there are also numerous devices which can affect the operation of the race vehicle during the race itself (although many are typically programmed prior to the start of the race). As described in prior art Noe et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,784,099 ("the '099 patent") entitled TIME OPERATED THROTTLE STOP, drag racing vehicles are typically designed to run faster than the allotted index time if the vehicle is maintained at full throttle. Designing the vehicle with a speed capacity that would allow it to complete a race under the allotted index time ensures that the vehicle will have sufficient power (and speed) under all racing conditions. However, this excess power must be controlled so as to complete the race in a total time in excess of the allotted index time, thereby avoiding disqualification. The '099 patent describes one specific example of what is commonly referred to as a two-stage (or dual stage) throttle stop controller. In essence, the throttle, while wide open at launch to reach maximum acceleration, will be closed for a period of time during the race so that the car does not run at an overall speed quicker than the allotted index time would allow.
Two-stage throttle stop controllers are operated by setting two timers prior to launch. The two timers begin to run upon launch of the vehicle. When the first timer expires, the throttle will be shut. Upon expiration of the second timer, the throttle will again be opened as it was at launch. Obviously, the difference between the values preset in the first and second timers is equivalent to the time in which the throttle will be closed. The result of utilizing such a two-stage throttle stop controller is a vehicle which launches at full throttle, reduces power at mid-track, and then reaches maximum power once again for the end of race ("top-end") charge. In reality, then, the term "two-stage" throttle stop controller is a misnomer since three separate stages (full throttle, close throttle, followed by full throttle) are actually achieved.
More recently, four-stage throttle stop controllers have been incorporated in drag racing vehicles. A four-stage throttle stop controller uses four timers which result in two separate periods during the race (after launch) in which the throttle will be closed. The main purpose of the second period of time during which the throttle is closed (a duration equal to the difference between the third and fourth timers) which is programmed to occur near the finish line, is to confuse your opponent into thinking there is a risk of running under the allotted index time (which would result in a disqualification). Ideally, your opponent would jam on his/her brake to avoid such a disqualification, your fourth timer would expire thus reopening your throttle, thereby permitting you to cruise to victory.
Biondo U.S. Pat. No. 5,642,712 ("the '712 patent") entitled ADJUSTABLE TIME OPERATED THROTTLE BASED ON ACTUAL RACE CONDITIONS provides an improved two-stage and four-stage throttle stop controller which permits the driver to increment or decrement the settings of the throttle stop controller timers based on actual conditions encountered during the race. Thus, if actual track conditions prove slower than anticipated, the value in the second timer is decreased thereby resulting in less time during which the throttle is closed. Alternatively, if the track proves faster than anticipated, the value in the second timer is increased thereby increasing the time in which the throttle is closed. This flexibility permits for more effective racing on race day. The device of the '712 patent can be utilized on two-stage or four-stage throttle stop controllers.
While the prior art described to this point reflects actions which occur when a vehicle is actually on the track, there are certain activities which can improve a driver's results for future races. For instance, there are separate push button devices presently marketed known as practice trees upon which a driver can test his reaction time for the start of a race. The miniature lights simulate the actual large Christmas trees so that a driver can improve his reaction time at the start of a race. However, no matter how much a driver practices, it is still essential to get feedback from races to determine how a vehicle and driver performed in an actual race, as opposed to the expected reactions.
One means of checking the results of the race is to utilize a replay tachometer that can provide information regarding the shifting and operation of the engine of the vehicle. The greatest problem in replay tachometers is that, although they provide information as to whether the engine shifted, there is no time reference as to when each action took place. More recently, separate interface devices have been made available which can be connected to the replay tachometer to download or print out engine functioning data. Although a time reference can be established upon which to plot such information, it is no more than an estimate of the actual operation of a delay box and a throttle stop controller. More importantly, such separate interface devices are expensive, stand-alone products that must be attached separately to the tachometer. The expense and complexity of such devices have prevented their wide spread adoption.
While separate driver reaction time testers and tachometer playback devices exist, it is extremely disadvantageous that such devices require separate components, wirings, etc. These inconveniences also result in additional expense.
In view of the aforementioned and other deficiencies in the prior art, it is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide a new and improved vehicle control box for a drag racing vehicle that further provides a driver reaction time tester utilizing a single, on-board display means.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a new and improved vehicle control box for a drag racing vehicle that additionally provides a race playback feature utilizing a single, on-board display means.
It is still yet a further object of the present invention to provide a new and improved vehicle control box for a drag racing vehicle that additionally enters the race playback feature mode utilizing the same user-operable keypad used to operate the vehicle control box.
It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide a new and improved vehicle control box for a drag racing vehicle that further enters the driver reaction time tester mode utilizing the same user-operable keypad used to operate the vehicle control box.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved vehicle control box for a drag racing vehicle that combines race features, practice features, and playback features utilizing a single, on-board display means to minimize cost.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the specification and the drawings.